The Reason
by konomi
Summary: What happens when Ayame goes to live with Shigure and the rest? Simple: total madness. But what if there's an important reason behind all this? Why did Ayame come to live with them in the first place?
1. Chapter 1

The Reason

Disclaimer: Fruits Basktet is property of Takaya Natsuki-sensei, all I'm doing here is let my imagination go wild lol. This story has been re-posted, in order to fix some mistakes.

Chapter1; the arrival

The rained poured hard on Yuki's head as he worked on his 'secret base'. Trying to protect the vegetables from being damaged was something that required strength, and he could handle that chore on his own so there was no need to ask Tohru to come with him like the last time.

"I better do this quick.. 'I bet Honda-san is worried by now'" he thought to himself.

Not far from there, behind some trees, someone stood watching. "Yuki"

Yuki turned around quickly at the sound of his name. "What the hell?"

Inside the Souma's house, Tohru stood by the door looking outside with a worried expression.

"If you don't put a sweater on you'll catch a cold Tohru-kun"

Startled, Tohru turned around and found Shigure leaning on the wall with a grin on his face.

"Ah, Shigure-san, that's ok you don't have to worry about me it's not that cold anyway.."

"Are you sure?" Shigure said as he walked towards her "I think you're looking pale today Tohru-kun, why don't you let me take a look.." –BAM-

"S-Shigure-san!"

Kyou stood behind him with an upset look on his face and a red vein popping out on his forehead.

"What are you trying to do you perverted old man!"

Shigure stood next to him with a bump on his head and a pitiful expression. "You're so mean Kyou-kun I was just trying to help"

"You're no doctor, why don't you just call Hatori if she's sick..."

"A-ah... I'm not sick really!" Tohru answered with an awkward smile. "I was just..."

"What were you doing standing by the door anyway" the cat interrupted her; it looked like he wasn't paying attention to what she was saying, actually he seemed tired.

"I'm just worried about Yuki-kun... he's still not come back and with this rain I'm worried something bad might happen to him"

"Keh! That rat is smart he'll make it home once the rain stops"

Shigure glared at him and his lips curved forming a smirk. "well well, looks like Kyou-kun's finally getting along with Yuki; he called him a 'smart rat' which is something you hardly get to hear"

"Shut up! It's because of this stupid rain I'm not thinking clearly! I cant help it, when it rains I get weak and words just come out of my mouth..."

"I know it was the rain talking don't worry Kyou-kun" he said with a big smile on his face as he patted his shoulder.

"I meant what I said about you"

Shigure's eyebrow started twitching as he forced a smile. "ahahah..."

Tohru kept her usual awkard smile when this kind of situation showed up. "Ano... Kyou-kun... why did you come downstairs , do you need anything?"

"Yeah I'm just gonna get a glass of milk that's all..."

"Oh! but I could've done that for you, you should've called me and..."

"What? I'm not handicapped you know, I can get a glass of milk on my own ..."

"A-Ah... yes but... I know you don't feel well when it starts raining, and for these cases it's better to rest and well if you need anything just let me know". Kyou blushed as he saw Tohru smile.

"Ge-h.. whatever..." he said as he stormed off to the kitchen.

"But Kyou-..."

"Look Tohru-kun, it seems Yuki's back home in one piece after all..."

Tohru turned aroud smiling and feeling relieved to see he was ok. "You're right Shigure-san!... eh..."

"What's wrong?"

"When Yuki-kun left he didn't take anything with him..." Tohru answered with a puzzled look on her face as she squinted her eyes to try to figure out what he was carrying on his hand.

"Hmm... you're right... and he is walking rather fast too... I wonder why..."

Before he could finish his sentence Yuki was already standing in front of him looking pissed.

"Take.Care.Of.This.NOW..." Yuki said as he held what it looked like a wet rope in front of Shigure's face.

"Ahh! But that's..." Tohru started saying nervously.

"What? A wet rope?"

"Take a closer look" Yuki said, his eyebrow twicthing as he sqeezed the 'rope' hard.

"Oh wow, it's changing colors... it's blue-ish now... wait... what the... Aya?" Shigure said in surprise. "Yuki-kun you better stop squeezing him he's blue now"

"Then take it away now before I commit homicide"

"Ayame-san! Quick let's get him inside, he needs to be warm right? Should I boil water? I better arrange a room for him right? Maybe he needs to eat! Soup? Miso! Ahh! Please dont die Ayame-san! I'll go get a towel!" Tohru said as she rushed inside the house, leaving them behind. Sweat drops fell.

"Honda-san..."

"She... she forgot to take Ayame with her..." Shigure held the poor snake close to his chest as they went inside.

A few hours later, they were all sitting in the living room having tea.

"Ahhh, this feels great... a warm cup of tea after being outside in this cold cold rain that tortured my precious body and soul" red veins popped out on Yuki and Kyou's foreheads as they heard Aya.

"You should've stayed home then! Why did you have to come here if you knew you were gonna faint!" Kyou yelled at him.

"Ah, am I hearing right? Is Kyonkichi actually worried about me? I never knew you cared so deeply about my health Kyon-chan; Shall I find brotherly love in you? Maybe we could be pretend brothers until Yuki-kun finally realizes what a great onii-sama I can be"

Aya started picturing himself as Kyou's brother, with a colorful flower background as he spoke.

"Oh how much fun that would be, of course, we'd have to change those ragged clothes you're always wearing, and I know we'd have to dye that orange hair of yours in order for people to think we're brothers, but that's ok that would only make me say 'Only because he is a carrot top doesn't mean you people can jugde him!'"

Shigure sat next to him smiling while the others sat there turned into stone.

"What! Who said I wanted to be your brother!"

"Hmph..." Yuki said while sitting in front of Ayame, crossing his arms.

"Yuki! You seem upset! Is it because Kyonkichi asked to be my pretend brother?" Kyou stared daggers at him. "You know I was only kidding! There is no way I would change you, my beloved little brother, for Kyonkichi! Please don't take this the wrong way Kyon but there is no way we could pass as brothers..."

"You don't say!"

"That is not the reason why I'm upset" Yuki said in a serious tone of voice. "Why did you show up like this all of the sudden? You have already met Honda-san I don't see why you'd have to be here now" Ayame's eyes saddened for a brief moment.

"Yuki-kun..." Tohru said in a low tone of voice.

"Yuki-kun, you shouldn't treat your brother like that... besides, it is always a great pleasure to have him visit us... ne Aya 3" Shigure said jokingly.

"Of course... always a pleasure, Gure-san 3" –wink-

"ahehehe..." tohru laughed nervously.

"Enough! Yuki's right, why are you here?"

"Oh well, you see..." His eyes got serious and everyone, including Yuki, payed attention to him, after all a serious Ayame was not something you saw everyday. " This is... a very serious issue... I've come to stay here for a while, something happened that I cant stay in my house..."

"Wh-What is it?" Kyou asked, a little worried and looking straight at him.

"Well, you see... a couple of days ago, I was sleeping peacefully in my bed, I woke up because I needed a glass of water and just when I got off my bed, I felt... something on my foot... it was some kind of liquid, but because I couldn't see anything I thought it was just water, spilled for some unkown reason, but then... when I turned on the lights... I saw it..."

"You... y-you saw what?" Kyou asked once again.

"It was red! I saw myself standing in a pool of blood! I thought to myself 'Oh my God Aya you're bleeding to death' but no! I was fine, it was the blood coming from the ghost that haunts my house! Rukibago's blood! Yes the same Rukibago that once lived in my house and was killed by a serial killer named Fufutori, oh how scared I was because I thought the ghost was going to kill me, but I said 'NO! I must live for Yuki's sake!' that's when I took my things and came here"

"..."

A cool breeze blew around the silent room.

"In other words, your house flooded..." said Yuki with his eyes closed and eyebrow twitching.

"Well if you want to see it that way, yes, but that's a little boring don't you think?" Ayame said after drinking some of his tea.

"You idiot! What kind of stupid story is that!"

"Ahh, but I noticed you were interested at first Kyon, mmm... I should work on my stories better then..."

"Gahh! I'm going upstairs! And don't you think of coming into my room again!" Kyou stormed off, followed by Yuki.

"Where are you going Yuki-kun? I've just started explaining why I'm here..."

"I don't need to hear anymore, I think I better leave or else I'll get a headache..."

"Ahh, wait! Yuki-kun! But, Ayame-san was just..."

"Just let him go Tohru-kun, he's ok, he just needs to calm down" Shigure said with a smile.

"H-hai... I'll go get some more tea then" Tohru got up, picked up the tray and left for the kitchen.

"You know Yuki-kun doesn't like those kind of stories, why do you keep telling them when he's around?"

"Ahh, that's just a way to keep me entertained; seeing Yuki-kun interested in what I've got to say is always good for me"

"...ne, you're not only here because your house flooded... are you Aya?" Shigure's eyes turned serious.

"No, there is a more important reason..."

"Are you gonna tell me now?"

"Mmm... no, I think it's better if we talked about it later... after all, I am welcome to stay here, arent I... Gure-san?"

Shigure smirked. "You know you are... I'm just wondering... why is it that you seem... sad for some reason"

"Being friends for such a long time really gives you the gift to sense when something's not ok, doesn't it?..."Ayame smiled slightly as he heard Tohru's foot steps coming closer.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2 ; it's a secret

The chirping birds outside his window woke him up. His eyes slowly opened; they were slightly red because he hadnt been able to sleep well. Yuki laid on his bed, staring at the ceiling and not wanting to move.

" _'...just a nightmare; this is just a nightmare.'_" He thought to himself, as he closed his eyes. Either way it was too early for him to wake up and get ready, and he was definitely not a morning person. So he thought of getting a little bit more of sleep, since he didn't want to worry Tohru.

" _'it's so quiet, it doesnt even look like he's staying he-'_"

"Good Morning people!"

" _'...' _"

The loud voice echoed though the whole house.

"It is time for you to wake up, sleeping beauties! HaHaHa!"

"OI! Why the hell are you yelling so early in the morning! Shut up!" Kyou yelled from his room.

"I only said that the sleeping beauties should wake up, not the beasts, so you can go back to sleep, Kyoun-kichi-kun! HaHaHa!"

"You ass-!"

"Nee, nee Kyou, you don't want Tohru-kun to hear you say bad words, right?" Shigure said.

"...Keh! Just shut up!"

And the exchange of words kept on going. Yuki heard all of this from his room and was about to yell at them as well, but again, he didn't want Tohru to see that 'angry at his brother' mood. It was too early.

"...Yuki! wake up! It is time for us to try and re-build our brotherly love! Early in the morning is always the best time for that!"

"Shut up!" Kyou yelled once again.

Yuki was now sitting on his bed, a red vein popping out on his forehead that seemed about to explode. He grabbed his pillow and burried his face on it. "_ 'AAAHH!' _"

Downstairs, in the kitchen, Tohru was making breakfast; Shigure sat at the table reading a newspaper while Ayame stared at the kitchen door, tapping his fingers on the table. Shigure lowered his newspaper and stared at him.

"...It's still a bit early for them to come have breakfast, you know."

"It is? I thought Yuki was a morning person." He said, puzzled.

"Actually, it's Kyou-kun the one that wakes up early every morning!" Tohru said happily.

"He is?"

"Yup" Shigure said, finally putting the newspaper down. "Yuki usually wakes up late; and even then he is still sleepy."

"I see..." Ayame said, smiling. Shigure stared at him. "There are still so many things I don't know about him; he is probably cursing at me right now, HaHa!"

As soon as she heard that, Tohru turned around, still holding the spatula. "That's not true! Yuki-kun would never curse at you! Ayame-san-..."

Ayame blinked at her a couple of times. She always had these kind of sudden reactions; it was quite funny, Ayame thought.

"Don't worry, I was just joking HaHa"

"Tohru-kun, the food!" Shigure said, pointing at the pan.

"A-ah!"

Shigure stared at Ayame once again. "Nee, Aya-"

"OI!" an angry Kyou yelled, not letting Shigure finish. "What the hell where you thinking by yelling so early in the morning huh?"

"There, there Kyon-kichi, don't get upset."

"Good Mornig Kyou-k-"

"What? Not get upset? Waking up because of a weird man's yelling is more than a good reason to be upset!"

"Well, I'm not the one yelling, you are; just think of what the neighbours will say; you should control yourself Kyon-kichi, no one likes a grumpy morning person"

"What! But-"

"The neighbours, Kyou-kun; think of the neighbours."

"But- ... dammit!" He had been defeated. He took his seat and stared angrily at Ayame.

"Pffft! Hahaha! Kyou-kun, you're so naïve" Shigure said, laughing as a confused Kyou stared at him.

"Huh?"

"We live in the middle of the forest Kyou-kun, we have no neighbours; other than the birds and other animals that live around."

Kyou's jaw dropped. "Shut up!"

"Ah, Gure-san, you're so mean, you didn't have to tell him that."

"I know, I just couldn't help it... pfft hahaha!"

"Why you... that's enough! Shut up already!" he snapped at them.

"That's what you get for being so stupid...baka neko."

"Yuki-kun! Good morning!" said a smiling Tohru.

"Morning, Honda-san" he replied, also with a smile.

Yuki stood by the door, fixing his tie. "And just because we have no neighbours doesn't mean you have the right to yell."

"I wouldn't be yelling if it wasn't because of your idiot brother!"

"That's not true. Even if he wasn't here you'd still be yelling."

Kyou punched the table. "If you're looking for a fight just say it! I have enough stress to kick your ass!"

Yuki's eyes narrowed. "Really?..."

"A-ah- but Yuki-kun, Kyou-kun..." Tohru said, worried.

Shigure sighed. "Not again, I swear someone will have to pay for all the damage caused to my house."

Yuki and Kyou stared at each other.

"Well, what are you waiting for, baka neko."

Kyou stood up and cracked his nuckles. He grinned and launched at Yuki. "Stupid Rat you're gonna-"

"STOP!"

"Huh!" Ayame was now standing in front of Yuki; instead of hitting Ayame, the punch went right to Shigure's head, knocking him out.

"Shigure-san!" Tohru cried, leaving the kitchen and rushing to aid Shigure.

"Stop! In the name of our brotherly love! Before you break Gure-san's house!"

"..."

"What the hell!" Kyou yelled angrily. Ayame turned around and faced Yuki.

"Yuki! You shall not fight because of me! I know you felt deeply hurt when Kyon-kichi called me an 'idiot' but Oh Yuki! You must remember not to pay attention to foolish words!"

"OI!" Kyou yelled at him once again; it was useless though, he was being completely ignored.

"What? I wasn't fighting because of-"

"Yuki! you have no idea how much this makes onii-san happy! But for the sake of your body and Gure-san's almost destroyed kitchen I must beg you to stop!"

"But-"

"A-ano..." Tohru's voice caught their attention. "I think Shigure-san needs medical attention!"

All their eyes focused on a semi-unconcious Shigure, who by now had a big bump on his head.

"Keh! He's fine." Kyou commented, sitting next to them.

"But, Shigure-san is-"

"He's not gonna die or anything; I bet he's just faking it"

"Gure-san!" cried Ayame, who rushed toward him. "Gure-san, don't you dare to die, we have yet to do so many things together!"

"Aya...Aya, I don't think-" he coughed. "I don't think I'll make it this time..."

"Eeh! Shigure-san!" Tohru cried.

"..." a cold breeze blew by.

"I'm leaving!" both Yuki and Kyou yelled at the same time.

"But, Shigure-san!"

"He's just faking, Honda-san. You don't have to worry; come on, we'll have to get something at school, it's a pity that because of these two we'll have to miss the breakfast you made."

"But, are you sure that-"

"He's fine, now let's go before it's too late" Kyou added.

"O-ok then..." Tohru stood up and followed the boys.

"Oh Gure-san, this life wont be the same without you!"

"Aya... please take good care of the children; and don't forget to tell them what a great papa I was"

"Jerks!" Kyou yelled.

"Ittekimasu!" a cheerful voice echoed in the house.

"Itterasshai!" both men yelled, joyfully.

"Well that was fun..." Shigure said, smiling as he stood up and went to serve breakfast.

"Indeed, we should do this more often; I miss role-playing with you, Gure-san."

"I do too, but as you can see, these boys are too 'mature' for this kind of things"

"Ah! But they are missing all the fun of being young, HaHaHa!"

"Yeah..." Shigure glanced at Ayame from the corner of his eye. "...Now, will you tell me the real reason you're here?"

Ayame closed his eyes and smiled. "Of course..."

Outside, Yuki, Kyou and Tohru walked to school. An uncomfortable silence had fallen upon them, until the cat dared to speak.

"Tche! I'm so hungry... and all of this because someone had to come and visit his little brother."

Yuki glared at him from the corner of his eye. "Are you trying to blame this on me, baka neko?"

"Damn right! He's your brother, you should tell him to stop visiting while we're on school. He's so annoying"

"It's not my fault he is that way, you know."

"I think..."

Both boys glared at her. "I think it's wonderful to have him around, he's always so happy when he comes to visit Yuki-kun; and Kyou-kun and Shigure-san as well. Wanting to spend time with those you love cant be that bad, right?" Said Tohru, smiling.

"Keh."

"Hn."

The hours passed; it was lunch time and the Souma boys were gathered on the roof of the school, having lunch along with Tohru.

"Ne, ne Tohru! Are you sure your friends wont mind you being here?" Momiji said happily, sitting next to her and eating from her bento.

"Hai, Uo-chan and Hana-chan had other things to do and said they would meet me after lunch, so it's okay"

"Yuki looks tired." Tohru stared at Haru. "Has something happened?"

"A-ah! Well, Ayame-san-"

"Ayame showed up at the house yesterday and hasn't shut up ever since." An annoyed Kyou answered.

" I see." Haru stood up.

"Eeh, Ayame is staying over at your house?"

"Hai!" a happy Tohru answered.

"Haru...where are you going?" Yuki asked.

"Just make a phone call." Just as he opened the door, a pair of dark eyes met his.

"Hatori..." Haru said, surprised to see him there.

"If the phone call was meant for me you can just stay here"

"Ah, yeah." Haru said, stepping back so the doctor could enter.

"Ha'ri! What are you doing here?"

"Ah! Hatori-san! Did somehting happen?"

"Did you come to check on us? Or maybe only Yuki? Nee, Ha'ri?"

"Calm down, I came to give Yuki a check up. Since he missed his last one..."

"Ah... yeah I guess I forgot" Yuki said as he walk toward the doctor.

"How did you know we were here?" Kyou asked.

"I know everything"

"..."

"Eeeh! Really? Ha'ri, really?"

"Of course not! He's playing with us!"

"Did you ask our home room teacher?" Yuki said, finally approaching him.

"Yes." Said Hatori. "Now, come with me downstairs..."

"Okay" He turned around and gave Tohru a smile. "I'll be right back"

Tohru nodded. "Hai!" Yuki then followed Hatori, leaving the rest behind.

A few minutes later, Hatori was done with the check up; he sat while making notes on his notebook, while Yuki fixed his tie.

"Is that all?"

"Yes..."

"Hatori..." Yuki stared at him as he wrote things down on his notebook.

"Yes?"

"...never mind... I'll go back to-"

"I understand Ayame is staying at Shigure's house."

Yuki sat on the examination table, staring at nothing in particular. "Yeah, he's been there since yesterday..."

"And this is bothering you, right?"

"Yes... no... well, yes; nii-san... he and I are too different, I think that's why we don't get along."

"Different? I think you two have more things in common than what you may think"

"Huh, that's not possible; he's always loud, he makes everything seem like a joke. His life seems like a constant party, laughing here, laughing there... it's like he's got nothing to worry about."

Hatori stopped writing. "I think you're wrong there, Ayame... he may seem to take things for granted, but in truth he's just keeping that all inside, so not to worry others; he has... some issues he's got to deal with, so bear with him Yuki, after all, he is your only brother."

"It's easy for you to say, he's not constantly bugging you-" He then remembered all the times he'd tried to stop Ayame from calling Hatori. "...I take that back."

"Hm?"

"Never mind... can I go now?"

"Sure..." Yuki got off the table and walked to the door; as he was about to leave, Hatori spoke one last time. " Do you think it would be better not to have him as a brother?"

Yuki stopped, he looked up at the ceiling and without turning around, he replied. "Sometimes; some other times, to be honest, I just don't care." And with that, he closed the door behind him.

Inside, Hatori leaned back on his chair. "You have quite some work to do there, Ayame"

Back at Shigure's house, Ayame sneezed. "Aah someone must be talking about me... I hope it's all wonderful things! HaHaHa!"

Shigure stared at him. " Arent you scared?"

Ayame stared at his plate. "I've told you before, there's nothing I can do about it..."

"Have you talked to Hatori about this?"

"I don't think I need to, he was there when I was told."

"But Aya, you cant just-"

"Maa, Gure-san; it's ok, really. I just want to enjoy this moment and try to make up for the lost time with Yuki!" he said cherfully. Shigure sighed.

"Are you going to tell him?"

"Perhaps; I still have time to think about all this"

"You know, you're being very selfish there, Aya"

"I know, havent I always been this way? Keeping secrets is one of my strong points; however, I could not keep this a secret from you, Gure-san. And as your friend, I demand support from you!... and a little bit more of miso soup, please"

Shigure chuckled. "Of course"

* * *

a/n: not much happens in this chapter; but dont worry, things start to get more clear in the next episode. :3 


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3; truth comes out

A few days later, Hatori sat in his office, comparing charts of his different pacients and writing down little notes that reminded him of the medicines he needed to give them.

ring ring-

"Hel-"

"_Hello, Ha-san! __It's been so long since I last heard from you! How are the kid-_"

click-

Hatori hung up the phone; vein marks appeared on his forehead as he went back to his work, only to be bothered a few seconds later.

ring ring-

"Hello"

"_Ha-san! That was so rude!_"

"I'm busy right now, Shigure"

"_I know but..._"

"What? I cant hear you, speak up"

Hatori had to make an effort to understand what Shigure was saying. The noise in the background was so loud he could barely hear anything except for Ayame's laughter.

"_I was saying that... hold on a second... Could you guys keep it down for a minute? I'm on the phone!_" Shigure yelled.

"_Then you better tell him to stop talking nonsense!_" an angry Kyou replied.

"_I don't know why you seem so angry, Kyon-kichi, I wasn't even talking to you you should stop listening to other people's conversations or perhaps you do this in order to call my attention? Do you want me to talk to you, Kyon-kichi_?"

"_What!_"

Hatori sighed.

"_A-ano, I think we should keep quiet for a bit, at least until Shigure-san finishes talking h-hehe_" a nervous Tohru spoke.

"_But Tohru-kun, if I keep inside all these things I want to say, my brain will collapse, leaving me mute and unable to express my feelings_"

"_I-I didn't know that!_"

"_LIAR!_" both Yuki and Kyou yelled.

"_Hello? Ha-san can you hear me?_"

"Yes, but-"

"_Kids! It's Hatori papa I'm talking to right now! I cant hear a word he is say-_"

click-

Hatori's eyebrow twitched. He stood up from his desk and reached into his pockets, taking out a cigarrette and matches. He opened the window and stared outside for a second before blowing the smoke.

ring ring-

It was his cellphone this time. He noticed it was Ayame the one calling and his expression turned into a serious one.

"Hello, Ayame"

"_Wrong! It's me again, Ha-san; I took Aya's cellphone, it would've been impossible to try and talk to you from inside the house._"

"Quite a noisy habitat you have to live in now"

"_Yeah, though it's nothing I'm bothered by... now_"

"I asume Ayame has told you what happened"

"_Yes... that's what I wanted to talk to you about_..."

Back inside the house, Tohru tried to calm Kyou down. It was useless though, because when he got upset, he paid attention to no one, and in this case, being Ayame the one who was causing his bad temper, was even worse. Yuki had somehow managed to stay cool; it would be worse if he replied to anything Ayame or Kyou said. So he just sat there, feeling as if all his strength was being drained.

"Yuki! Is something wrong? Are you feeling ok? You look pale!"

"Yuki-kun?" Tohru's worried face made him force a smile.

"I'm fine, Honda-san"

"Nothing like a princess' worried face works as better medicine for a fallen knight! But what if..." Ayame leaned closer to Tohru, making her blush. "...another prince came and tried to steal dearest princess away"

"E-eh!"

"Nii-san!"

"Oi! Get away from her you freak!"

"Kyon-kichi, the buffoon of the story does not speak; he just stares and does comical stunts to ease the tension"

"BUFFOON!" his cat ears twictched as he stared angrily at Ayame.

"Yes! Just like that!"

"Gaa! I'm going to my room!" he yelled, as he rushed out of the kitchen.

"Kyou-kun!"

"Aah Kyou-kun takes everything so seriously"

"Perhaps nii-san should stop making jokes like that; it's not only upsetting all of us, but Honda-san-"

"A-ah! Don't worry, Yuki-kun, it's-"

"No, Tohru-kun, Yuki's right; as the adult here I should behave like one."

"Ayame-san"

"It's ok! Now, now, wont you be a good princess and make tea for all of us?"

"Nii-san!"

Just then, Shigure walked into the kitchen.

"Ara? Wasn't Kyou-kun here as well?"

"Yes, but he decided it would be best for him to practice some jokes in his room" Ayame said, smiling.

Shigure smiled awkwardly. "Maa, Aya, better not upset Kyou so much; he could end up breaking something."

"HaHaHa! You think I've been too cruel to him? I better go apologize to him then"

"That's fine" Shigure said, walking towards the door. "I'm going out for a while, need to run some errands."

"Ah! But I can do that for you if you want, Shigure-san!"

"No, no, that's fine Tohru; I have to pick up several things and it might take a lot of time" Shigure said, smiling.

Yuki stared at him suspiciously. "Is that so?"

"Of course!"

"Mmm..." Yuki closed his eyes. "Are you sure it has nothing to do with the fact that today is the 9th and your editor will be stopping by to pick up your unfinished work?"

Shigure stared at him; serious eyes met Yuki's. "Yuki-kun, that is not true; of course it has nothing to do with my work, I'm a very responsible person and-"

ding dong-

"..."

"I'm out, see you guys later!" He said, rushing out of the kitchen.

"I knew it..."

"I better go get the door" said a smiling Tohru.

The two brothers stayed behind in the kitchen. Yuki stared at nothing in particular, but avoiding Ayame's glare. Silence filled the room.

Ayame lowered his eyes. "It's funny how I cant think of anything to talk about now that I have the chance to"

Yuki just paid no attention to him. Suddenly, voices were heard from the entrance.

"_...Eeh? Sensei's not here!_"

"_A-ahaha, hai, I think he just left to run some errands_"

"_Kyaaa! Senseii! Why? Why do you do this to me everytime?_"

"_A-ah! Mit-chan-san! Please don't cry! I'm sure he-_"

"_Ara! There's something moving over there... ara! Sensei! Eeh! Don't you run away from me, Senseii!_"

"_Mit-chan-san!..._"

"Hmph... I knew it"

Ayame smiled. "You sure have come to know Gure-san well"

"This happens every month, so..."

Ayame stood up quickly, startling Yuki. "Yuki! I have a great idea!"

"Eh-"

"Why don't we go out and get the things we need for dinner!"

"Such random thing to say... did you just think of that?"

"Of course!" Yuki was starting to get annoyed once again. "If one stops to think about everything that's planned to do all the time, the fun of just doing random things is gone, therefore, things become 'boring' to do, that's why I prefer to be spontaneous HaHaHa!"

"Nii-san, you're only thinking about yourself! You cant just say something like that expecting others to do as you wish; besides, we cant just leave Honda-san-"

"Ano..." a smiling Tohru came into the kitchen. "It's ok, really! I was actually going to tell you that I need to go out for a few minutes; Hana-chan is returning a book she borrowed from Shigure-san a while ago."

"Oh... well, the house cant stay alone-"

"Alone? Yuki! have you forgotten about Kyon-kichi? I know he can sometimes annoy you to the point of actually wanting to forget about him but..."

Yuki's eyebrow twitched. " _'I cant believe he just said that!' _" he thought to himself.

"...to actually forget about him!"

"...alright..."

"Plus! Yuki, you cant just leave nii-san alone like that, what if I have an accident?"

"What kind of an accident can happen to someone while shopping for groceries?" Yuki asked, serious.

"Oh no Yuki! You're wrong! Of course accidents can happen, I remember I watched something on the news one day; a young healthy man, like myself, went shopping for vegetables and suddenly, as he was going to pick up a lettuce, he stepped on a tiny rock and fell on his back! And as he was going to cry for help he noticed that all the lettuces were going to fall right on top of him!"

"E-eh! Poor guy!" said a now worried Tohru.

"Nii-san!" yelled an angry Yuki.

"Yes!" he said, holding Tohru's hands. "The poor guy was since then, called 'The Salad-man' isnt that something awful?"

"Nii-san that's enough! You're just making that up!"

"And I can just imagine myself under a pile of lettuces now... how very sad is that!"

"Ayame-san!"

"Alright! I'll go with you! Just quit upsetting Honda-san!"

"...alright then! Off we go!" Ayame said cheerfully.

Yuki sighed. "I'm so sorry for this Honda-san; we'll be back soon"

"Hai!" a smiling Tohru replied, as she watched Yuki leaving the kitchen.

Ayame took one of her hands and kissed it, making her blush. "A-Ayame-san!"

"Thank you, princess" he winked at her and then rushed to meet Yuki.

"Hai" said Tohru, still holding her smile.

About 20 minutes later, Yuki and Ayame were inside the grocery store. Girls stared at them in awe as they walked down the aisle. Yuki seemed very annoyed by this, however, Ayame seemed not to care.

"Couldn't you be a little less loud?"

"What do you mean?" Ayame asked, confused.

"...nevermind."

"It's alright" Ayame replied in a calmed tone of voice. "Feel free to tell me when I'm being annoying; sometimes, Nii-san gets carried away by the joy of spending time with Yuki, and not notices when he's talking too much. That's one of the many faults I must correct, HaHaHa!"

Yuki just glared at him as they walked. Ayame stopped in front of the fruit section and picked up a mango. He held it in one hand and examined it; he smelled it and then put it back where it was, picking another one right after doing so.

"It was not good?"

"No, it was too bland; you see, if you pick up a mango that's too bland, it means that it's been out for too long and the taste wont be the same. It'll taste a bit too sour and be difficult to chew it."

"I see..." Yuki picked up a mango himself and started smelling it.

Ayame glared at him from the corner of his eye. "So? What do you think"

"I don't know"

"What does it smell like?"

"Like... a mango"

"Let me see" Yuki handed him the fruit and observed. "Hmm... this one is not that bland, but it still is not the one we're taking home with us; it smells a bit sour."

"It smells... a bit sour?"

"Yes, you can still notice the difference by its smell. The good ones smell... how to explain this; they smell sweet"

"I see... I didn't know you knew so much about fruit"

Ayame smiled. "Well, that's just proof that nii-san not only knows about fashion, but about fruit as well HaHaHa!"

Without noticing it, Yuki had become interested in what Ayame had to say. When he wasn't being loud as usual, when he wasn't talking nonsense that only he and Shigure understood, the things he had to say were actually interesting to him.

"...and what about-"

"I cant believe none of this mango is actualy good for taking; MANGO BOY! Where is the Mango Boy!" Ayame said loudly, making people turn their heads and stare at the both of them.

Yuki held an angry and embarrassed expression. "We're leaving!" he said as he walked away.

"Mama!" a little girl yelled. She was standing next to Ayame, trying to get an apple. "Mama look!" the little girl took one, not noticing that the rest was crumbling down, ready to burry her under a mountain of apples.

crash-

Yuki turned around only to find Ayame laying on the floor, under a pile of fruit. The girl was sitting a few steps away, crying.

"Nii-san!" Yuki rushed to his side, when suddenly -poof!-. Yuki stood frozen as the people started gathering around them.

"_What happened?; Is anyone hurt?; I think I saw a man standing there just a while ago!_" questions like these started making Yuki nervous, as he stared at the clothes under the apples.

" '_What now! Think, Yuki, THINK!' _... The little girl is crying! Where is the mother!" Yuki yelled, and as soon as everyone focused on the girl, Yuki quickly grabbed Ayame's clothes and ran outside.

Shigure sat next to Hatori on the porch of his house. Both smoking and with a cup of hot tea next to them.

"...He has so little time; that's going to be a little difficult." Shigure said.

"Yeah."

Shigure glared at Hatori. "Are you going to go through with this?"

"You know I cant do anything when Akito gives the order."

"Still, don't you think this time... Akito has gone too far?"

Hatori closed his eyes as he listened to Shigure.

"...erasing the memories he has of Yuki; that is something I never thought you'd have to do. That is something-"

"...None of us can do anything about." Hatori interrupted. "For the first time, I tried to reason with Akito about this; but as Akito said: '_You have done this before, no reason to argue with what I say, because in the end, you'll end up doing it anyway_'"

"I have no clue what Aya did to make Akito this mad."

"Neither do I"

"I know I sound like a bad friend when I say this, but... to try and gain Yuki's trust and appreciation back in such short period of time... that is almost impossible" Shigure said.

"However, you must know that when it comes to his brother, there is no 'impossible' for Ayame."

Shigure closed his eyes, as he remembered a conversation he had had with Ayame a few days back.

_Shigure and Ayame sat across the kitchen table; Shigure stared at the man sitting in front of him with serious eyes._

"_... that's why I asked; no... that's why I begged Akito to give me this period of time. Because the memories I have of Yuki, they are both sad and wonderful at the same time. However, the memories Yuki has of me... they're all sad. If I had stayed quiet, not saying a word, Akito would've had Tori-san erase my memories of him right there. But then I thought, 'that's very selfish' because for me, it wouldn't have affected me afterwards. I would no longer have a younger brother; I would no longer look at Yuki with the eyes of an elder brother, but with the eyes of a stranger."_

"_However" Shigure said._

_Ayame continued. "...However, to Yuki, I would still be his elder brother. He would look at me and get no response from me. It would be like going back in time; I'd be abandoning him once again, only this time, I would not have the chance to make up for that in the future. Yuki would then grow up hating me even more, and I would have no clue about it."_

_Ayame stared at his plate of food. " But, if Yuki had all his memories of me erased, it wouldn't hurt him right? Because he would have no memory of me abandoning him, of me being his brother. I would be no one to him. And I'd rather watch him from a distance knowing I'm his brother, than watch him with indifference. So, if I can manage to gain his trust, his love, then Akito will have Tori-san erase his memories, instead of mine. That was the deal."_

"_Not a simple task... do you think you'll make it?" Shigure asked, staring at him._

"_I am aware that the chances of that happening are very little. But they're still there, and I have no intentions of giving up"_

_Shigure smiled. "I shouldn't be smiling, but your optimism has always charmed me... you stupid, stupid man."_

"_I know, arent I just adorable?" he replied, smiling as well._

Shigure opened his eyes, a smile drawn on his face.

"What's with that expression" Hatori asked, glaring at him from the corner of his eye.

"Mm... nothing, just admiring a fool's optimism"

Hatori smiled and closed his eyes. "A fool indeed."

A/n: My chapters are turning out to be longer and longer, I apologize for that! I will take care of that for the next chapters XD; so sorry ;;!


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4; starting the mission

Yuki ran through the busy streets, avoiding as many people as he could, holding Ayame's clothes close to his chest. He turned left on a corner and didn't stop running until he reached the end of the alley. Leaning against a wall, Yuki tried to calm down and started taking deep breaths; normally, running like this wouldn't have tired him out so much, however, the though of Ayame turning into a snake and the thought of all the people in the supermarket witnessing it had made him really nervous to the point of feeling as if his heart was going to explode from all the commotion.

"...Why must it always be like-"

"Yo, kid..."

Yuki suddenly stiffened. From the corner of his eye, he noticed that two men were standing not far from him, blocking the way out.

"Watchu got there huh?... Stole something?"

"We saw you running... got money there?"

The two men started walking towards him. Yuki gave two steps back, looking around to see if there was any way out; not being able to find any sort of exit, he started panicking.

" '_Damn... if there was a way out I could at least try to escape but... with nii-san transformed now it's gonna be-' _"

"Oi Kid!" one of the thieves yelled at him. "If you're not gonna talk then I guess we should make you talk, huh?" he said, taking out a knife.

The two men started approaching him with a threatening look in their eyes. "This should be a piece of-"

"Enough!" a voice came from within the clothes Yuki was holding. "How dare you threaten to hurt Yuki like this!"

"Nii-san! Stop!" Yuki whispered, tightening the grip on the clothes so that Ayame would stop moving.

"I shall not! I cant just stay here and watch my little brother be treated like this! Outrageous! As your elder brother I have to do something, I have to protect you from these savages!"

Both the thieves watched the scene in shock. "What the hell is going on here?!"

"A-ah..." Yuki was now struggling to keep the clothes from moving.

"Fuck this! I'm not gonna let one stupid kid-"

The clothes suddenly stopped moving. Both the thieves backed away in surprise at what they were looking at in front of them. Standing in front of Yuki, there was a rather threatening looking snake.

"What the fu-..."

"Enough! I've had it with this threatening and foul language! How dare you speak like this when you're in front of such a pure boy whose virginal ears have never heard the use of these dirty, unnecessary words! You savages!"

Yuki's eyebrow started twitching. " '_Nii-san...!' _"

" Savages?... what the..." The thief stared at Yuki, then at Ayame, and then back at Yuki, as if trying to understand why the hell was this snake speaking and even giving him a lecture. "Yo kid, what the hell? Are you trying to mock us? Are you some kind of ventriloquism or some shit like that?"

"First of all..." Ayame started approaching them. "It's not _ventriloquism_, young man; it's _ventriloquist_. Ana may I add, the term you're using is definitely not the correct one; wouldn't snake charmer be something more suitable for this situation?. Second, no, my dearest Yuki is not a ventriloquist, nor snake charmer; although if he were ever to become one, I think he would totally be the best one out there and would have my whole support, obviously. And third, I think I already told you to stop using foul language when in front of him, you fucking assholes...!" he yelled loudly as he showed them his fangs.

Yuki stood behind him, shocked at this new side of his elder brother, as he watched the thieves run away. He was not going to admit it, but hearing this angry and defying tone Ayame had taken had scared him a bit. After all, this was the first time he had seen him angry at anyone.

"Aah... I'm sorry, Yuki; I did not want you to hear such horrible terms but I had to do something or else those bad men would've tried to hurt you and I couldn't let that happen. I hope you don't think I use these terms very often because I-..." Ayame stared at Yuki, puzzled to find him staring at him without saying a word. "Yuki! Are you ok?"

"I... I'm fine I just-"

Ayame hurried back to his side and climbed until reaching his shoulders. "Yuki! I know this must have been an incredible terrifying situation to experience but please say somehthing! Could it be that you've become mute because of the shock this has caused you!? How can I live with myself after this? Yuki! I shall find a cure for your muteness!"

"Nii-san! I'm fine!... Nii-san!" Yuki tried to make his brother understand, but it was useless. He sighed and then grabbed his brother, wrapping him with his clothes. "Nii-san, would you calm down? Nii-... useless... let's just head back to the house"

"No, wait! Let's go somewhere quiet, I could transform there and this way we could continue with our day together, how about that, Yuki?"

"...Fine, let's go...and no more talking till we get there!"

Back in the house, Tohru was getting things ready to make dinner. She was a little worried that Ayame and Yuki had still not come back from shopping and wondered if things were going okay between them.

"I hope Ayame-san is able to close the gap between them... it would be great if they could get along well, even if just for a little while..."

"You're dreaming then..." Kyo said as he walked into the kitchen and opened the fridge.

"Dreaming...?"

"Those two will never get along, they're just too different; that stupid rat doesn't have the patience to put up with Ayame's crap. His world's just too perfect to let anyone like him get in and mess it up"

"...I think that can be changed; I think Ayame-san's love for Yuki-kun will be able to make him see that what he's doing is just to get closer to him" Tohru smiled. " I don't think anyone could be able to reject that kind of effort, because everyone is always looking to be appreciated..."

Kyo stared at her. "Tche, whatever..." he said, burrying his face back into the fridge as he looked for the milk. "Hey... didn't we just get milk the other day?"

"Ah! Yes, but..." Tohru was interrupted by Shigure, who had just returned.

"Hello children!" he yelled, startling Kyo.

"Hey! Would you stop yelling everytime you come back to the house? It's annoying!"

"Welcome home!" Tohru replied with a smile.

"Aah! Tohru-kun, why must you be the only one who welcomes me so warmly?" he said, putting his arm around her shoulders.

"Stop that, you perv! You're starting to sound just like _him_..."

"And by ' _him _' you mean..."

"Don't play dumb!"

"Oh alright..." Shigure let go of Tohru and went to the fridge. "Are those two back yet? I'm starving..."

Tohru's eyes widened as she noticed scratches on Shigure's cheek. "Shigure-san! Your cheek! what happened to you?"

"Oh, this?" he said, touching the red marks. "Tohru-kun... it was all his fault!" he turned around quickly and pointed at Kyo, who spilled the milk he was drinking.

"What?!"

"Well it was all because of you anyway... see these marks? They were all made by a stray cat!"

"And what's that gotta do with me?!"

"Well, I figured you must've been wearing my clothes and gotten all your stench on them! That's why this cat started following me, so when I tried to make it go away, he climbed to my shoulder and scratched me! I'm telling you now Kyo-kun; it's not okay to borrow my clothes, fill them with your stench and then putting them back in my closet! Now you see this kind of thing happens because of your careless actions!"

"What? What are you nuts? I didn't wear your-.. I _don't_ wear your clothes and I don't stink! I bathe everyday!"

"I don't believe you! I've seen you go straight to bed after your training! No bath! You smelly Kyo!"

"What?!" Kyo stared at the smiling Tohru and blushed. "...whatever! but I didn't take your stupid old-guy-looking stinky clothes!" he said, and stormed off the kitchen.

"A-ah, Kyo-kun!"

"Dont bother, Tohru-kun he'll forget by dinner" Shigure said, chuckling.

"Ah, then I better get the first aid kit and attend that wound on your face"

"Sure, sure, just make sure you have enough time to make dinner Tohru-kun!"

"She's not your slave, you idiot!" Kyo yelled from his room.

"Well she's been making dinner for you too, does that make her your slave then?"

"...!!... whatever!" Kyo's flustered voice was followed by the sound of him slamming the door.

"Hahaha, it's so amusing making fun of him..." Shigure touched the marks left on his cheek. "Ouch!"

Behind some bushes, Yuki sat next to his transformed brother. The snake laid on top of its clothes.

"Aah, it's wrinkled over here as well..." Ayame said, turning towards Yuki. "Oh, but please don't think I'm blaming you, Yuki! you had no choice! Plus some of your scent has rubbed on my shirt and I have to say it smells good and makes me feel even closer to Yuki."

"Nii-san!... such a disgusting and weird thing to say..."

"What? What's wrong about loving the body lotion you use?" Ayame stared, confused.

"I don't use body lotion!"

" Then is it soap?"

"No... argh! … just be quiet unless you want us to be discovered!"

Ayame saw how uncomfortable Yuki's expression was, and stayed quiet next to him.

"... I'm sorry; I guess I just get a little nervous when I'm around you. I must be so annoying, huh?" he smiled.

Yuki sighed. "You are. But... I think it's okay if you are annoying sometimes. It got us out of trouble, right..." he sighed again. "I guess what I'm trying to say is 'thank you'... But you shouldn't do something stupid like that again, it could get you killed."

Ayame's eyes started tearing up as he smiled widely. And suddenly, poof; he transformed back to normal.

"Yuki! you have made me so happy!" he yelled.

"Kyaa!!"

Ayame and Yuki turned around, only to find that they were being stared at by some people.

"Hey! There's a naked man harrasing a girl! Someone call the police!" a man yelled.

"Wha-"

"Nii-san let's go _now_!!" Yuki and Ayame started running, leaving behind a bunch of confused people.

Shigure and Kyo laughed out loud as they continued to listen to Ayame telling the story. A blushing Yuki sat next to Tohru, who couldn't help but smile at the scene.

"It was not funny!" Yuki said, punching the table.

"Y-Yes it was! '_Yuki! you have made me so happy! _' cant believe you just yelled that at the park... and the people! Hahaha, they must've been shocked!" Shigure said.

"Well of course they were..." Ayame said, smiling. "It's not often that you get to see a perfect body like mine in all it's naked glory"

"Nii-san!" Yuki yelled, turning to Tohru. "Honda-san... please forgive us; we didnt even get to bring anything for dinner..."

"Ah, that's okay. We had some leftovers and it was really no problem at all"

"Hahaha!"

Yuki stared at Kyo. "It's not that funny you know... baka neko"

"Whatever... I was not the one hiding behind a stupid snake"

Yuki stood up; then Kyo stood up.

"Okay, okay kids, that's enough..." Shigure said. "Why don't we just end this conversation now... don't want you to destroy anything more in this kitchen"

"Tche... I'm going to my room..."

"Me too." Yuki said.

"And make sure it's not the same one, children!" Ayame yelled.

"Shut up!" both Yuki and Kyo answered back before they stormed off.

"A-haha... I think it's time for me to leave too..."

"You're going away, Princess Tohru?" Ayame asked, leaning on the table and staring at her.

"Yes! I promised Uo-chan I'd go to her place tonight; Hana-chan's also gonna be there" she said with a smile.

"Oh so it's a PJ party!...Wont all the princesses need a super King tonight?" Ayame winked.

"Maa, maa Aya... just let her go this time.. we can have our own PJ party, right?" Shigure winked at him.

"Why yes we can, Gure-san"

Tohru smiled awkwardly as she watched the disturbing duo. After she was gone, Shigure stood up.

"Want some tea, Aya?"

"Sure..." Ayame stared at him. His serious glare following his friend.

"Now, I don't mean to seem like I'm trying to interfere with your business, but making Yuki blush wont necessarily help you in your quest..."

Ayame stood up and started walking towards him. "I think I made some progress today..."

"Really?"

"Yeah..." he stood next to him.

"How co-" Shigure's eyes widened as his face was suddenly turned towards Ayame's. He had grabbed Shigure's jaw and turned it towards him as he stared at him.

A shocked Shigure wondered about his friend's intentions."Um...Aya? What are you do-... Ouch!"

Ayame had ripped the bandaid off Shigure's cheek and was now staring closely at the red marks on it. Then, he closed his eyes.

"So... you tell me you're not 'trying to interfere' yet you go and get yourself scratched by Akito?"

Shigure smiled. "So you didn't buy it?"

"The cat story? Come on Gure-san... I'm not as naive as Kyo as to fall for such a story" Ayame walked back to the table and sat down.

Shigure sighed. "Hatori told you?"

"Well, I called him right after what happened at the park; he said I should let you know you forgot one of your dirty novels at his place"

"No, I just left it there for him... you know a man gets lonely when..."

"Gure-san, don't change the subject"

"Fine..."

"Since I found out you had been at Tori-san's I figured you'd try to talk to Akito... and coming back home to find you like this... it was no coincidence"

"Are you mad?" Shigure stared at him.

Ayame leaned on the table and stared at one particular fridge magnet. He smiled. "Not really...I guess it cant be helped; we've always butted-in on eachother's matters anyway"

Shigure sighed. "Havent I always warned you not to piss Akito off? You know better than to use a tone when you talk with anyone at the house, especially Akito."

"Couldn't help it; whenever someone bad-mouthes Yuki, they deserve to be told they're wrong"

"But talking back to Akito? And even mentioning Akira-san? That was way out of line and for something so insignificant as someone bad-mouthing him..."

Ayame turned his glare towards him; his serious eyes met Shigure's. "I don't think standing up for my brother is something to be considered 'insignificant'. I promised myself that I wouldn't let Yuki down anymore, and I'm trying to do that. Even if it can be considered as something stupid or little; I still want to do my best... I mean, isnt that what big brothers are for? To protect the younger ones no matter what?"

"You're right about that."

Ayame smiled at Shigure. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you the whole thing earlier; it would've prevented you from getting your face deformed"

"What? It's not deformed! It'll heal..."

"Well of course it is, I'm gonna take care of you and heal you with lots of love... Gure-san"

"Oh, Aya!"

"...What the hell is that about!" Kyo yelled. He had just entered the kitchen to get some water and found the lovely scene instead. "That's it! I'm getting a mini fridge for my room! I cant stand walking into a room and find you two weirdos doing nasty things!"

"Nasty things? Kyonkichi, I'm sure a guy your age is curious about lots of things, but keeping nasty thoughts in your head all the time is not good for your health" Ayame said.

"What?! You stupid snake!"

"_Ah, it's good to see you're still the same, Aya_." Shigure thought to himself as he laughed at the scene.

Well, this update means I'm back; I'm so sorry for the really long absence to all those who were following the story. I'll be sure to update this soon :3! Thank you for reading!


	5. Chapter 5

Capter 5; third party observer

Capter 5; third party observer

* * *

Tohru stood still, leaning against one of the walls right outside the kitchen. Her hands clutched againt her chest, as if trying to calm it down and make herself breath normally again. She had forgotten about the cake she had prepared for the slumber party, and had quickly turned back to get it, but something made her stop the moment she approached the kitchen doors.

"_Havent I always warned you not to piss Akito off? You know better than to use a tone when you talk with anyone at the house, especially Akito."_

Tohru had come to learn that whatever mention of Akito was no good news for anyone. Her heart raced faster as she listened to the conversation between the two adults. She felt like she was listening to some forbidden affair she wasn't supposed to, and many times the thought of walking away crossed her mind, but it was just impossible for her to leave as her feet had become like stones that glued her to the floor.

"_I don't think standing up for my brother is something to be considered 'insignificant'. I promised myself that I wouldn't let Yuki down anymore, and I'm trying to do that. Even if it can be considered as something stupid or little; I still want to do my best... I mean, isnt that what big brothers are for? To protect the younger ones no matter what?"_

As the words crossed her mind for some reason she felt like crying. She didn't know exaclty what had caused it, but the thing she was sure about was that Akito had become upset at Ayame and that perhaps this was the reason for his stay at the house. Perhaps this was his punishment? But it made no sense. What if it had something to with their bond? The bond Ayame had so dearly tried to restore. Her thoughts came to a sudden stop when she heard footsteps coming from the stairs; she quickly made her way around the corner and hid herself from view. The thought of her being caught like this ashamed her, but she figured it was better this way since it seemed Ayame didn't want them to know. She used the distraction caused by Kyo to sneak out through the front door without being noticed.

"Honda-san! I thought you had left already" Yuki said, coming down the stairs.

"A-ah!" Tohru stared at Yuki, her mind went blank for a few seconds. "Yes, I just realized I forgot the cake I made for Uo-chan and Hana-chan so I had to come back" she said, forcing a smile.

"Oh I see" he smiled as he watched her come to him. "It's good that you remembered while you were still near the house then"

"Yes"

"Would you like me to accompany you after-"

Yuki got cut off as the sliding kitchen doors spread wide open; Ayame leaning against the door frame while holding a package and behind him, an image of Kyo yelling at Shigure.

"Well what do we have here, Yuki!" Ayame spoke, his tone as loud as ever. "Did I just catch you offering yourself as this princess' escort? Hm?"

"What? No I-"

"Well I'm sorry my dear Yuki, I can not allow you to walk this princess at this hour of the night all alone!, what will happen if someone tries to kidnap you?"

"What are you talking about it's only 8-"

"Then nii-san would have to come to the rescue and obviously I would have to rescue you first, that would mean I'd have to leave Tohru-kun all by herself while others try to kidnap her and it would just be a mess I tell you, do you really want to let this happen, Yuki!"

By the time he had finished, Yuki was already heading upstairs, apologizing to Tohru for his sudden lack of energy. Golden eyes then rested on Tohru. He smirked, the package he was holding dangled from side to side.

"Well, we better hurry before this cake gets ruined, shall we?"

Tohru nodded, playing nervously with her hands.

For the most part it had been Ayame the one doing all the talking. She had barely paid attention, as she was focused on acting as normal as she could so that he wouldn't notice her uneasyness.

She stopped and watched him approach one of the benches near the park, dropping himself on it, looking exhausted as if he had just come back from excercising.

"Ayame-san are you ok? Is it too cold tonight? Do you need anything?"

"Haa Tohru-kun how could you let me just go on and on like that! I mean you could've said something really! I didn't mean to monopolize the conversation but it's no fun to talk alone you know? As a princess you should be able to maintain a proper conversation and not just let your escort do all the talking!"

"A-ah! I'm sorry! I'm sorry Ayame-san I was just distracted I didn't mean to make you feel like you had to talk to me to keep me entertained I didn't-"

He let a small sight out and chuckled. "It's ok Tohru-kun… you shuld've learned by now not to take everything I say so seriously"

"Ah, yes.." she said, sitting next to him, avoiding his glance.

He stared at her for a little while before closing his eyes and leaning back on the bench. They stayed silent for a few minutes.

"So I guess our little princess has become a spy now"

Startled, Tohru turned to him, bowing in an apologetic manner.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to I'm so sorry-"

Surprised at her reaction, Ayame sat up straight and lifted her face. "I didn't mean to sound angry, I'm sorry" he smiled.

Tohru felt her cheeks getting warm. Ayame was ceirtanly a beautiful man, and even more so when he acted like this.

"I have to say you're better fitted as a princess; I could see your silhouette through the sliding doors HaHaHa"

"Are you okay?" Tohru suddenly blurted out. "I...I know it's none of my business but I just want to know if you're okay and if Yuki-kun is okay..."

"Yes, we're both okay, so you don't have anything to worry about"

"But-"

"What you heard, Tohru-kun, is nothing for you to be worried about; the situation is not as bad as it sounds, I'm sure it will be over before you know it" his thoughts drifted away with the soft breeze.

"Then... then why do you seem so sad"

"Sadness is just another part of life Tohru-kun, you of all people should know it; it doesn't mean it's something bad though, I'm just sad because soon I'll have to leave Gure-san's place that's all" he smiled.

"You can always come back!"

Ayame stared at her.

"I-I mean I know it's Shigure-san's home but I'm sure he wont mind, they all took me in and I'm not even part of their family and-"

"HaHaHa! Of course I know I can come back, it's Gure-san's place after all! Tohru-kun, you should really not worry so much or you'll get old faster than me HaHaHa ..." Ayame stood up, stretching his arms. "I escorted you out here so you wouldn't be worried about what you heard, but I would like it if this could just stay between us"

"Eh?"

"I mean, Yuki does not need to know about this, right? Why worry him when there's really nothing to worry about." He glared at her from the corner of his eye. "You do understand that, don't you, Tohru?"

"Yes"

"Well then, I'll leave you to continue your walk from here. Since this is a big park I bet there are lots of little snakes all over the place, I wouldn't want you to be scared in case any of them decided to come over and say hi to me" he said, smiling.

"Oh, I understand completely, don't worry about me Uo-chan's house is very close from here" she smiled back at him.

"Good then, you make things so much easier for me Tohru-kun; I'll see you tomorrow then! Have a good night"

"You too, Ayame-san" she said. Tohru stood there, waving at him as his figure became more and more distant until he was finally gone from her sight.

Shigure spilled all the tea he was drinking as he stared at the smiling man that sat in front of him.

"You what?!"

"I mean I tried to be as smiley as I could while I did it, I'm not mean you know"

"Aya, you threatened the girl and left her in the middle of the street all alone!"

"I would hardly call that a threat, I didn't even get my gun out nor said I was going to hurt her so"

"I feel sorry for Tohru-kun, she's such a nice girl"

"You're over-reacting Gure-san, it was not as ugly as you make it sound. Plus I bet she didn't even now I was using a tone with her, HaHa"

"You can be a scary man sometimes"

Ayame smiled. "I know"

The next couple of days were spent normally at the Souma's home. Ayame had said he'd go visit his store for some of his customers may be waiting for his return, so the boys were happy to finaly be able to have some peace.

Yuki sat at the kitchen table, going over the last couple of subjects for the next day's classes. Tohru stood right behind him, getting things ready for dinner.

"Aah" Yuki sighed. "It's so nice to be able to study quietly for once, I was missing that"

"Eh... but, isnt it nicer when there's more people around? You know, 'the more the merrier'... or something like that was it?"

"Hm? Well, yeah I guess, but you know, it's not always nice when you constantly have who just wont shut u-"

"But! B-But Ayame-san-" Yuki stared at her, surprised at the reaction. "I mean, Ayame-san always has something interesting to say, that's what I think"

"Yeah... I guess you're right"

Tohru had been containing herself from asking him about how their relationship was going. As much as she wanted to help, she couldn't now because of the promise she had made to Ayame. Not intereing had become one of the goals of her day. She was already very much involved with the Souma family, and did not want to cause any more trouble, but being close to them like that only arouse the need to be there for them in her. Day after day she had been watching closely the little steps Ayame gave towards building a new relationship with Yuki. sometimes it worked, sometimes Ayame had gone too far and upset Yuki. but there was always an effort. It pained her to know that he was struggling with this on top of being somehow under Akito's watch.

"...Just wish it wasn't something stupid like most of the stuff that comes out of his mouth"

"But Yuki-kun you shouldn't say that I mean... Ayame-san is struggling he is-"

"Struggling? What do you mean?"

Tohru stared at him, wondering how she would later explain Ayame that she broke her promise.


End file.
